CategoryState

North Carolina statewide filing deadline is December 20

By Kate Carsella
In Federal, Local, State
December 12, 2019 at 1:03 PM
The statewide filing deadline to run for elected office in North Carolina is on December 20, 2019. In North Carolina, prospective candidates may file for the following offices:
• U.S. Senate
• U.S. House
• Governor
• Lieutenant Governor
• Attorney General
• Secretary of State
• Treasurer
• Superintendent of Public Instruction
• Auditor
• Commissioner of Agriculture
• Commissioner of Labor
• Commissioner of Insurance
• State Senate (all 50 seats)
• State House (all 120 seats)
• State Supreme Court judgeships for Seats 1, 3, and 6
• Five judgeships on the North Carolina Court of Appeals
The primary is scheduled for March 3, and the general election is scheduled for November 3, 2020. In primaries where no candidate receives a majority of the vote, the state’s primary runoff will be held on either April 21 (if no federal office requires a runoff) or May 12 (if a federal office does require a runoff).
North Carolina’s statewide filing deadline is the seventh to take place in the 2020 election cycle. The next statewide filing deadline is on January 10, 2020, in Mississippi.
North Carolina has a divided government. A Democrat, Roy Cooper, holds the governor’s office while Republicans have majorities in both chambers of the state legislature. A state government trifecta exists when one political party simultaneously holds the governor’s office and both state legislative chambers.
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Governor Brad Little says Idaho is the least-regulated state in the nation

By Jace Lington
In State
December 10, 2019 at 4:59 PM
Idaho Governor Brad Little says that Idaho became “the least-regulated state in the country by cutting and simplifying 75 percent of regulatory rules in one year,” according to a press release from the governor’s office.
In April of 2019, the Idaho State Legislature failed to pass legislation that would have reauthorized administrative rules in the state—essentially repealing the state’s entire regulatory code.
Governor Little subsequently announced a goal to simplify up to 60 percent of the state’s regulations by the end of 2019. He said he directed agencies to get rid of duplication and not to change fundamental policies.
Little said that since January he has worked with the state legislature to cut 1,804 pages from the administrative code. He calculated that for every chapter he and the legislature added to the code they cut another 83 chapters.
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Georgia House of Representatives District 171 special election

By Daniel Anderson
In State
December 10, 2019 at 4:22 PM

A new state legislative special election has been added to our list. The special election is for the District 171 seat in the Georgia House of Representatives on January 28, 2020. If no candidate receives a majority of the vote, a general runoff will be held on February 25 for the top two vote recipients. There is no primary, and the filing deadline is on December 18, 2019.

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Georgia Supreme Court justice announces appointment, impacts May 2020 election

By Kate Carsella
In State
December 9, 2019 at 12:44 PM
On December 5, 2019, Georgia Supreme Court Justice Robert Benham announced his plans to retire on March 1, 2020.
Benham became an associate justice of the nine-member Georgia Supreme Court in 1989. He was appointed to the court in December of that year by Governor Joe Frank Harris (D). Benham served as chief justice of the court from 1995 until 2001. Benham previously served on the Georgia Court of Appeals from 1984 to 1989; Gov. Harris appointed Benham to that court in April 1984.
Benham earned his undergraduate degree in political science from Tuskegee University in 1967. He earned his J.D. from the University of Georgia’s Lumpkin School of Law in 1970. In 1989, he earned his LL.M. from the University of Virginia. He also attended Harvard University. Benham joined the U. S. Army Reserve after law school. He left the service as a Captain.
Selection of state supreme court justices in Georgia occurs through nonpartisan election of judges; however, the governor appoints judges with the help of a nomination commission in the event of a midterm vacancy. Benham’s replacement will be Governor Brian Kemp’s (R) first nominee to the nine-member supreme court. Judges serve six-year terms.
The Georgia Supreme Court is the court of last resort in the state. It currently includes the following justices:
• Justice Keith Blackwell – appointed by Gov. Nathan Deal (R)
• Robert Benham – appointed by Gov. Joe Frank Harris (D)
• Michael P. Boggs – appointed by Gov. Nathan Deal (R)
• David Nahmias – appointed by Gov. Sonny Perdue (R)
• Harold Melton – appointed by Gov. Sonny Perdue (R)
• Nels Peterson – appointed by Gov. Nathan Deal (R)
• Sarah Warren – appointed by Gov. Nathan Deal (R)
• Charlie Bethel – appointed by Gov. Nathan Deal (R)
• John Ellington – Elected
In 2020, there will be two state supreme court vacancies in two of the 29 states where replacement justices are appointed instead of elected. The vacancies were caused by retirements. One vacancy occurred in a state where a Republican governor appoints the replacement with the help of a nomination commission, and the other occurred in a state where a Democratic governor appoints the replacement with the help of a nomination commission.
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Washington governor announces supreme court appointment

By Sara Reynolds
In State
December 9, 2019 at 12:42 PM
Washington Governor Jay Inslee (D) appointed Judge Raquel Montoya-Lewis to succeed Chief Justice Mary Fairhurst on the Washington Supreme Court. Fairhurst is retiring on January 5, 2020, for health reasons. Montoya-Lewis is Inslee’s second nominee to the nine-member supreme court.
At the time of her appointment to the state supreme court, Montoya-Lewis was a judge for the Whatcom County Superior Court. Gov. Inslee appointed Montoya-Lewis to this court on December 15, 2014. Before her appointment to that court, Montoya-Lewis served as the chief judge for the Nooksack and Upper Skagit Indian Tribes in Washington. Montoya-Lewis received her undergraduate degree from the University of New Mexico. She received both her master’s degree in social work and her J.D. from the University of Washington. She is an enrolled member of the Pueblo of Isleta and a descendant of the Pueblo of Laguna Indian tribes.
In the event of a midterm vacancy, the governor appoints a replacement to the Washington Supreme Court. The appointee serves until the next general election, at which point he or she may run to serve for the remainder of the predecessor’s term. The nine justices of the supreme court compete in contested elections without reference to party affiliation and must run for re-election when their terms expire. Supreme court justices serve for six years.
Founded in 1889, the Washington Supreme Court is the state’s court of last resort and has nine judgeships. As of December 2019, three of the court’s nine justices were appointed by Democratic governors. The other six were elected by voters.
In 2019, there have been 22 supreme court vacancies across 14 of the 29 states where replacement justices are appointed instead of elected. Retirements caused 14 of the vacancies. Two former justices took jobs in the private sector. One vacancy occurred when a justice was elevated to chief justice of the court, one occurred when a chief justice died, and four others occurred when the justices were elevated to federal judicial positions.
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Vermont governor announces supreme court nomination

By Sara Reynolds
In State
December 9, 2019 at 12:30 PM
Vermont Governor Phil Scott (R) nominated Judge William “Bill” Cohen to succeed Marilyn Skoglund as a justice on the Vermont Supreme Court. Skoglund retired on September 1, 2019. Cohen was Gov. Phil Scott’s (R) second nominee to the five-member supreme court.
At the time of his state supreme court appointment, Cohen was a superior court judge in Rutland County, Vermont. Governor Howard Dean appointed Cohen to the bench in 1999. Cohen was an attorney in private practice from 1986 to 1999. He was a deputy state’s attorney in Rutland County from 1984 to 1986. Cohen earned a B.A. in environmental science from George Washington University in 1980 and a J.D. from Vermont Law School in 1984.
Selection of state supreme court justices in Vermont occurs through gubernatorial appointment with state Senate confirmation. A judicial nominating commission submits a list of names to the governor, who then selects an appointee. The Vermont State Senate must also confirm the appointment. Approved nominees serve for six years, at which point they face retention by a vote of the Vermont General Assembly.
Founded in 1777, the Vermont Supreme Court is the state’s court of last resort and has five judgeships. As of December 2019, two of the court’s justices were appointed by Republican governors and two were appointed by a Democratic governor.
In 2019, there have been 22 supreme court vacancies across 14 of the 29 states where replacement justices are appointed instead of elected. Retirements caused 14 of the vacancies. Two former justices took jobs in the private sector. One vacancy occurred when a justice was elevated to chief justice of the court, one occurred when a chief justice died, and four others occurred when the justices were elevated to federal judicial positions.
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California statewide filing deadline is December 6

By Marielle Bricker
In State
December 6, 2019 at 3:44 PM
The filing deadline to run for elected office in California is on December 6, 2019. In California, prospective candidates may file for the following offices:
 
? U.S. House
? State Senate
? State Assembly
? Ballotpedia is also covering local elections in the following areas:
  • 12 counties
  • 17 cities
  • 94 school districts
 
The California Secretary of State will release the official candidate list on December 26. The primary is scheduled for March 3, and the general election is scheduled for November 3, 2020.
 
California’s statewide filing deadline is the fourth to take place in the 2020 election cycle. The next statewide filing deadline is on December 9 in Texas.
 
California has a Democratic state government trifecta. A trifecta exists when one political party simultaneously holds the governor’s office and majorities in both state legislative chambers.
 
 


Texas statewide filing deadline passes on December 9

By Marielle Bricker
In State
December 6, 2019 at 3:44 PM
The major-party filing deadline to run for elected office in Texas is on December 9, 2019. Independent candidates must submit their declaration of intent to run on the same date, but the final filing deadline for independent candidates is June 25, 2020. In Texas, prospective candidates may file for the following offices:
 
  • U.S. Senate
  • U.S. House
  • Texas Railroad Commissioner
  • Texas State Board of Education
  • Texas State Senate
  • Texas House of Representatives
  • Texas Supreme Court
  • Texas Court of Criminal Appeals
  • Texas Court of Appeals
  • Ballotpedia is also covering multiple municipal and school board elections in Texas in 2020.
 
The primary is scheduled for March 3, and the general election is scheduled for November 3, 2020.
 
Texas’s statewide filing deadline is the fifth to take place in the 2020 election cycle. The next statewide filing deadline is on December 18 in Ohio.
 
Texas has a Republican state government trifecta. A trifecta exists when one political party simultaneously holds the governor’s office and majorities in both state legislative chambers.
 


Special election runoff held in Georgia House district

By Tyler King
In State
December 6, 2019 at 3:39 PM
A special general election runoff was held for District 152 of the Georgia House of Representatives on December 3, 2019. Bill Yearta (R) won the special election with 3,419 votes and defeated Jim Quinn (R).
 
The general election was held on November 5, 2019. The filing deadline passed on September 18, 2019.
 
The special election was called after Ed Rynders (R) resigned his seat on September 5, 2019, citing health concerns. Rynders served from 2003 to 2019.
 
Republicans now have a 104-75 majority in the Georgia House of Representatives with one vacancy. Georgia has a Republican state government trifecta. A trifecta exists when one political party simultaneously holds the governor’s office and majorities in both state legislative chambers.
 
As of December, 77 state legislative special elections have been scheduled or held in 24 states this year. Eleven special elections have been scheduled for 2020 in five states. Between 2011 and 2018, an average of 77 special elections took place each year.
 


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